*Teams scheduled to play a number of high profile matches
The Botswana Senior (men and women) and Under 21 (men and women) National hockey teams are currently in camp as they prepare for a number of friendly matches which the Botswana Hockey Association (BHA) believes will give them the much-needed exposure.
BHA President, Unaswi Matebu, told Voice Sport that she believes staying longer in camp and playing against some tough opposition will eventually pay dividends.
Local hockey national teams endured a difficult time at the three nations 2021 Africa Indoor Cup held in Durban, South Africa (SA) from 16-18th April.
Botswana heavily lost all their games against Namibia and South Africa, and did not score a single goal.
“We want to play as many international friendlies as possible as we want them to get that international big match temperament which will surely help to get the needed results,” she said.
Matebu further said they are in the process of reviewing their technical plan to accommodate club activities following the lift on the suspension of sports activities.
“I believe the plan will be up and running in the not-so-distant future,” said Matebu.
Quizzed about her plan for grassroots development, she said they’ve not yet assembled the Under 13, 16, and 18 due to Covid-19 restrictions.
“There are no school sporting activities at the moment, which makes it a challenge as most of them are students,” she said.
Meanwhile, Matebu said they have been in constant contact with their affiliates since March last year.
“We have been in touch with our affiliates since last year when sports activities were halted – mind you, there was no running league at the time because our calendar year was coming to an end.
However, I cannot confirm the exact return of the league as the events committee is currently working on that,” she said.
